The Weisman’s art rental program offers U students, employees, and departments the opportunity to display pieces of art from the museum’s collection in their homes or offices. More than 300 framed, ready-to-hang, original artworks are available for rent.

Interested in renting?

Stop by the WAM Shop to view works available for rental!

Questions? Email [email protected] or call 612-626-3389 for more information.

Renting is Affordable

$15 (plus tax) per artwork per semester for U of M students (limit 3)
$45 (plus tax) per artwork per year for U of M employees (limit 5)
$45 per artwork per year for U of M departments (no limit)

Conditions

Renters are responsible for transporting and hanging artworks and for displaying them in a safe environment. The artworks in the rental collection are property of the Weisman Art Museum and are not available for sale.

History

The rental program began in 1934 at the Weisman’s predecessor, Northrop Auditorium’s Little Gallery. Students could rent print reproductions for 25 cents each to adorn the walls of their dorm rooms. The program is named for Hudson D. Walker, the first curator of the Little Gallery, and his wife Ione.

For additional information about art rental, contact [email protected].

Student interns work on focused projects in a variety of departments. Students interested in unpaid internships may submit an application at any time or check back for open positions below. New placements, when available, occur at the beginning of fall and spring semester and during the summer. Internships are available for academic credit. 

Current Openings

Association of Art Museum Directors (AAMD) Digital Interpretation & Accessibility Internship 
$18/hr | 25 hrs per week over a 17-week term (Aug. 2026 - Dec. 2026)

Eligibility Requirements

Applicants must be currently enrolled as undergraduate students (sophomore, junior, or senior standing) at an accredited college or university at the time of the internship. Students from a wide range of academic disciplines are encouraged to apply, including but not limited to art history, museum studies, American studies, Indigenous studies, design, digital humanities, communications, accessibility studies, public history, education, or related fields.

Applicants should demonstrate an interest in museums, digital interpretation, public engagement, or accessibility in cultural institutions. Prior museum experience is not required; however, applicants should be comfortable working collaboratively in a professional environment and engaging thoughtfully with issues related to public access to cultural resources.

Ideal candidates will have:

• Strong written and verbal communication skills
• Interest in digital storytelling, interpretation, or public-facing educational content
  
• Curiosity about museum accessibility and inclusive design
  
• Ability to work both independently and collaboratively
  
• Basic familiarity with digital tools, research, or content creation (such as writing, image editing, or web platforms) is helpful but not required.

Internship Project Description

The intern will support the development of digital interpretation and accessibility tools for WAM’s upcoming exhibition Seeds of Memory, Stones of Survival. Working closely with the Public Engagement and Learning team, the intern will help create a story map, self-guided tour, and digital accessibility resources that support multiple ways of engaging with the exhibition’s themes.

In addition, the intern will attend the museum’s forthcoming Terra Convening Conference, a two-day summit in October 2026, focused on Indigenous sovereignty that brings together artists, scholars, and cultural leaders. Through this experience, the intern will gain exposure to how museums convene interdisciplinary and community-centered conversations around urgent cultural issues. Following the convening, the intern will produce a short editorial or reflective piece that connects their observations to museum practice, public engagement, and their own professional development.

About Seeds of Memory, Stone of Survival: 

Seeds of Memory, Stones of Survival brings Pueblo knowledge systems into direct dialogue with Western artistic traditions that have long shaped how land, labor, and progress are visualized in the United States. Anchored by a contemporary stone sculpture by Jemez Pueblo artist Clifford Fragua, the exhibition examines how knowledge is preserved, transmitted, and claimed through seeds, landscapes, data, and relationships. From a Pueblo perspective, seeds are ancestors, stones are archives, and kinship is the foundation of survival. Knowledge is neither abstract nor extracted; it lives in land, ceremony, and community.

By contrast, many Euro-American artists represented here treat land as something to be recorded, cultivated, or mastered. Pastoral scenes of prairies, rivers, and farms, along with images of mills and expanding cities, reflect settler-colonial narratives that equate progress with extraction, ownership, and the transformation of Indigenous homelands. These works serve as visual data, documents that reinforce the inevitability of settlement while obscuring Indigenous presence and sovereignty.

Organized around three interconnected themes: Seed Sovereignty, Data Sovereignty, and Kinship. The exhibition asks how different cultures decide what to preserve and why. Indigenous artists Julie Buffalohead and Jim Denomie expose the violence and absurdity of colonial systems through humor, satire, and refusal, while Fragua’s sculpture offers an alternative epistemology grounded in Pueblo law, memory, and relationality. Rather than presenting Indigenous knowledge as supplementary or symbolic, Seeds of Memory, Stones of Survival centers it as a living system that has sustained communities despite centuries of dispossession.

Key Responsibilities

• Assist in researching and organizing exhibition content for a digital story map and self-guided tour for Seeds of Memory, Stones of Survival
• Support the development of accessible interpretive materials, including plain-language text, audio prompts, and visual descriptions
• Collaborate with staff across Public Engagement and Learning, Curatorial, and Communications
• Participate in exhibition walkthroughs, planning meetings, and user-testing of interpretive tools
• Attend the museum’s Terra Convening Conference focused on Indigenous sovereignty and engage in guided reflection related to museum practice
• Contribute to documentation, evaluation, and reflection on the project’s outcomes
  

Learning Outcomes

• Gain hands-on experience in museum interpretation, accessibility, and digital engagement
• Develop research, writing, and project coordination skills within a collaborative museum environment
• Learn how museums center multiple ways of knowing—particularly Indigenous knowledge systems—within interpretive and public engagement practices
• Understand how museums convene interdisciplinary conversations around complex cultural and social issues
• Build professional experience through structured mentorship, reflection, and exposure to museum leadership
  

Project Deliverables

• Draft and/or finalized components of a digital story map
• Content for a self-guided tour
• Digital accessibility resources and documentation of interpretive decisions
• A written editorial or reflective piece responding to the Terra Convening experience
• A final reflection or summary report at the conclusion of the internship
  

Professional Development Stipend

n addition to the internship stipend, the Intern is eligible to receive up to $3,000 to support participation in a professional development opportunity of their choice. Eligible opportunities may include, but are not limited to, national and regional conferences such as the American Alliance of Museums Annual Meeting, the Association of African American Museums Conference, and the Association of Academic Museums and Galleries Conference. Other professional development opportunities may be considered with prior approval.

Application Deadline

Monday June 1, 2026

How to Apply

Send PDF cover letter, resume, and letter of recommendation directly to Katie Covey Spanier, Director of Public Engagement and Learning, [email protected] 

Sign up for WAM e-News to receive monthly student news—including occasional announcements about student job opportunities and internships. 

Interested in the role of art and museums in social change? Want to learn from museum professionals and artists? Find out more about the WAM Collective!

They play a crucial role in helping the museum stay relevant and engaging for the UMN campus body by investigating arts and culture trends and exploring the future of museum practice. WAM Collective Officers engage with the museum's professional staff, artists, advocates, and the community on projects that reflect the concerns, interests, and passions of the student perspective. 

WAM Collective is a registered campus life program through the UMN Office of Student Unions and Activities.

WAM Collective Mission

WAM Collective serves as the student voice of and for the museum, acts as a bridge between the widely diverse student body of the U of M and WAM, advises staff on effective ways to engage the student body, and is proactive in promoting WAM throughout the University community and beyond.

Vision

• Collaborates with campus and community partners to promote cross-cultural dialogue and celebrate diverse perspectives.
• Educates and develops the next generation of cultural consumers to appreciate and support the arts.
• Nurtures the next generation of arts and cultural leaders through professional development opportunities.

WAM Collective Requirements

• Readings: Readings are essential to our continued learning about the museum and contemporary art fields. You are expected to read all assignments thoroughly, making notes, and to bring all questions to our next meeting. Readings are here.
• Attendance at Meetings and Programming: Attend and participate actively in discussions, presentations, and exercises. It is expected that WAM Collective members will contribute their ideas, thoughts, and reflections to class discussions, and will listen respectfully to the contributions of others in meetings. Collective members are expected to be present at Study Nights, student-centered programs, and our WAM public programs.
• Participation: WAM Collective is a community of emerging museum practitioners, creatives, arts and cultural leaders and enthusiasts. We will focus on critical, self-reflective thinking, integrate knowledge from a variety of disciplinary and sociocultural perspectives, examine social and cultural complexity, and probe the impact of knowledge on ethical decision-making for museum professionals. Participation in conversations and activities is essential.
• Tabling: WAM Collective officers are required to table at least twice per semester.

What does the WAM Collective do?

Well…a bunch of things! Throughout the year, the WAM Collective learns about contemporary museum practices, plans and hosts programs, creates fun and intriguing digital and written content, and collaborates with other student groups and departments on campus, incorporating the student voice in a strongly impactful way. Along with all of our projects and programs, the WAM Collective is also a great way to connect with other creative minds and make new friends.

How do I join?

Each year, interested students are asked to fill out a brief form, providing us with a resume to highlight their past experience (although none is required), and then asked to interview with student group leaders. From the interviews, we build our cohort for the year! 

WAM Collective Officer  | $500 stipend per semester, 1.5-hour meetings weekly

The WAM Collective Office reports to the Campus Engagement Manager to support the engagement of diverse audiences with WAM collections and exhibitions. This is an academic year long commitment consisting of weekly meetings, office hours, and scheduled tours. Group meeting times, 1.5 hours long and held in-person at the Weisman Art Museum weekly, will be determined based on existing and new members' availability. 

WAM Collective is accepting new WAM Collective Officers for the 2026-2027 academic year. 

Apply Online

Application closes 11:59PM, May 11, 2026; Program starts June 1, 2026

To apply, please complete the WAM Collective Officer Application Form. If you have any questions contact WAM's Campus Engagement Manager, Joy Scanlon, at [email protected].

WAM Collective hosts Study Nights at the Weisman during the school year, which are free to all U of M students. Study Nights offer a great way to enjoy the museum, catching up on studies, hanging out with friends, or getting hands-on with art-making activities. The first 100 students to arrive receive a free drink voucher from Misfit Coffee! Check the calendar for upcoming Study Nights

The museum works with students who are interested in conducting research with the museum, and gives students the opportunity for immersive and interactive learning. Each year, UROP funds hundreds of students who produce new knowledge and creative work in partnership with the U of M’s world-class faculty. UROP serves students and faculty whose learning and teaching goals include outside-the-classroom enrichment.